Wilcats’ mounting success
There’s no guarantee that high school athletes and coaches will receive any immediate payoff for commitment and hard work, but they’ll all tell you that, if and when it comes, success is a welcome reward.
And that’s why there have been plenty of smiles in the past couple weeks at Mt. Spokane High School, where female athletes in three sports are still celebrating a fall full of accomplishment, a level of success unprecedented in the school’s brief history.
The cross country team won its second straight Greater Spokane League championship and missed qualifying for another trip to the state 4A tournament only because 2003 third-place finisher Megan O’Reilly was injured and unable to compete at the regional race.
The soccer team, under new coach John Marshall, finished second in the GSL with an 11-2 record and was eliminated in the district tournament. The volleyball team qualified for the regional tournament but fell short of its first trip to state.
Miller sees Mt. Spokane’s success resulting from the convergence of a number of factors: a good run of athletes through all four classes, increased numbers in all sports, and support from faculty and parents.
But most of all, he sees it as a validation of an athletic department philosophy based on four principles – that coaches will try to make sure all participants feel physically and emotionally safe, that athletes will enjoy what they’re doing, that every athlete will feel like an equal and important part of a team and that there will be continual emphasis upon skill development.
Fitting those potentially disparate components is a challenge for any coach, but to put them together and see the results reflected in athletic success is truly an improbable achievement.
“Our coaches buy into that philosophy,” Miller said. “Especially at the varsity level, winning is important, but we feel that if those other four things are happening, the wins will take care of themselves. When kids are enjoying themselves, they want to improve, and they’ll work on their own to do that.”
Fourth-year cross-country coach Bob Barbero sees a cooperative attitude among coaches, who might be forgiven if they were to compete for outstanding athletes at Mt. Spokane, a school with 3A enrollment which continues to compete at the 4A level.
“That just doesn’t happen here,” he said. “We have to live together and work together, so we work with what we get.
“Hopefully, when younger kids see our success, they’ll want to be part of that and we can build off that. I think that this fall speaks well for the overall program.”
Reid was ecstatic about the volleyball team’s success: “These girls pulled it together in a truly team concept. They epitomized a team-first attitude, and it all worked because they trusted each other.
“I kept 12 girls, instead of my usual nine or 10, and I told them that at a different point in the season, every one of them would have a single special moment, an opportunity to come through on one special night. It was fun to see that happen.
“Everybody talks about the importance of support,” he said, “but this fall it’s really happened out here. Our coaches are pretty close-knit, and that camaraderie among athletes and coaches works to sustain success. It’s important for kids to know that their hard work is being noticed!”
Marshall, who succeeded Jeremy Ochse, had a different challenge. He’s in his fourth year of teaching at Mt. Spokane, but his coaching background is in club soccer locally and in Washington, D.C.
“We had 10 seniors,” he said, “and I attribute all our success to them. They did everything I asked, and they provided phenomenal leadership.
“I didn’t get the position until late summer, but the girls were never anything but positive about the change. Every coach does things differently, but their work ethic and attitude made my job easier. It’s all on them.”